By Geetansh Pasricha
For the past few race weekends, the possibility of Max Verstappen ditching Red Bull for Mercedes has been the talk of the town, which plunges George Russell into the depths of F1 uncertainty. However, a report soon circulated that the Briton was offered a 1+1-year contract by the German giant, which he supposedly turned down, leading fans to usher in conclusions for the Mercedes driver situation.Verstappen’s situation at Red Bull has never looked more fragile ever in the 2025 season as after his Austrian GP retirement, his WDC chances have shrunk considerably in comparison to his McLaren rivals. On the other hand, Toto Wolff has openly expressed his intention of getting the reigning world champion onboard, which makes Russell and Kimi Antonelli’s situation at Mercedes quite vulnerable.Despite such chatter in the paddock, Russell has more often than not been the lead Mercedes driver and became the fourth driver this year to win a race. Though questions loomed over their job security at the Brackley-based squad, a report soon emerged that George Russell was offered a contract extension by the German giant, which he promptly rejected.However, Russell’s dismissal of the proposed contract led fans to deem that the seat at Brackley was now Verstappen’s:”PR….Max is taking that seat.”kachwanya @kachwanyaLINKPR….Max is taking that seat”Mercedes are such a thrash team. They did the same thing to Lewis,” one fan wrote.”1 plus one is bad sign. All about a Red flag 🚩” another questioned Mercedes’ supposed proposal.However, some fans deemed Russell’s recent performances warranted him a longer contract:”Toto is a driver f**k boy,” one netizen wrote.”So he should, he deserves it,” another netizen wrote.”George deserves a longer contract. He has proved it,” a third netizen wrote.The Briton joined Mercedes in 2022 after spending three years at Williams, proving his worth to the grid.F1 voice Martin Brundle deems George Russell nervous amid Max Verstappen’s possibility of moving to MercedesMax Verstappen (L) and George Russell (R) after the qualifying for the F1 Grand Prix of Canada – Source: GettyGeorge Russell’s addition to Mercedes’ arsenal in 2022 helped the team secure its sole victory of the season. More often than not, the 27-year-old has driven the lead Silver Arrow on track and brought in crucial points for the team.However, Max Verstappen’s presence in the driver market would make any team accept extravagant demands. This seemingly weakens the Briton’s position in the contractual negotiations phase, as former F1 driver turned commentator Martin Brundle said on Sky Sports F1:”I think George Russell is nervous and ringing around a little bit. There’s no smoke without fire. 2026 is massive, biggest change ever in F1 for the chassis and power unit and you guess Mercedes will be there or thereabouts. Would you put Red Bull (there) and can Max actually get out of his contract? Something’s up.”Russell is only nine points away from overtaking Max Verstappen in the championship standings.